Super Bowl XLVII Quick Hits

The 49ers were playing in their sixth Super Bowl. Their quarterbacks had never thrown an interception in any of those games until Colin Kaepernick did it with 6:55 left in the first half. Ed Reed picked him off over the middle.

Joe Montana and Steve Young were the other 49er quarterbacks in the Super Bowl.

For Reed, it was his ninth career playoff interception, tying a record set by three others, including 49ers great Ronnie Lott.

Fake FG backfires

The Ravens lined up for a 32-yard field goal late in the second quarter, looking to push their lead to 17-3. The snap went to kicker Justin Tucker, who ran to his left toward the sideline. He was knocked out of bounds at San Francisco's 6-yard line.

The problem was he needed 9 yards. The Ravens turned the ball over on downs, and their lead remained at 14-3.

No love for Goodell

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell might have been the least-liked person in New Orleans this past week after he pretty much decimated the Saints' season with his punishment for the Bountygate scandal.

There were signs in restaurants and bars throughout the city with his picture and the words "Don't serve this man." There is a Mardi Gras float with his likeness in an unflattering position, and he had security guards with him wherever he traveled.

Goodell kept a low profile, mostly highlighting his work with organizations supporting Hurricane Katrina, the storm that nearly destroyed the city in August 2005.

Goodell said with a laugh that he has felt welcome here.

"You look back at it and my picture is in every restaurant, I had a float in a Mardi Gras parade and we got a voodoo doll," he said. "I'm serious. People here have been incredible. ? I understand the fans' loyalty is to the team. They had no part in this. They were completely innocent in this. So I appreciate the passion."

Learning with the Eagles

Before John Harbaugh became the Ravens' head coach, he spent eight seasons as the Eagles' special teams coordinator from 1998-2006 before switching to secondary coach in 2007. The Ravens made him head coach the following season, and the team has made the playoffs in each of his five seasons in Baltimore.

Harbaugh said his experience with the Eagles - both under former coach Andy Reid and from the media - was invaluable in preparing him to be a head coach.

"Special teams is a great place to start as a coach," Harbaugh said. "I had an opportunity to work with every single player on the team ? which is a great training ground for the job that I'm doing now.

"You get a little work with the media. It was a good training ground with the media, too. That's a pretty important part of this job, too. It was just a great experience."

Gradkowski enjoys moment

Former University of Delaware center Gino Gradkowski said he will never forget his Super Bowl experience. The rookie backup center for the Ravens, Gradkowski played on special teams during Sunday's game against the 49ers.

But the two weeks leading into the game seemed endless for Gradkowski. He didn't go out much, wanting to make sure he'd be ready for the game and not consumed by the distractions.

"[Earlier in the week], I walked around a little bit," Gradkowski said. "Besides that, I've just kind of been hanging out. You can come to New Orleans anytime. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in the Super Bowl, so you don't want to get caught up in sightseeing and all that."

Gradkowski said in the days before the game he had no idea how he'd react when he first walked onto the field Sunday.

"I'm excited to see what it is," he said. "This buildup is a lot. So I can't wait to finally play the game. Being able to experience this my rookie year has just been awesome. I couldn't have landed in a better situation."

Ex-Eagles with chance for a ring

Beyond John Harbaugh, both teams have several connections with the Eagles.

The Ravens have former Eagles running back Wilbert Montgomery, who has a ring as the tight ends coach with the St. Louis Rams in 1999. Montgomery, the Ravens' running backs coach, was the Eagles' running back in 1981 when they lost the Super Bowl to the Oakland Raiders.

Juan Castillo was hired two weeks ago as the Ravens' running backs coordinator but is a consultant for the Super Bowl. He was the offensive line coach when the Eagles went to the Super Bowl in 2005. Guard Bobbie Williams played for the Eagles from 2000-03, and safety Sean Considine played for the Eagles from 2005-08.

For the 49ers, there's kicker David Akers, wide receiver Chad Hall and director of player personnel Tom Gamble, who got his start as a player personnel assistant in 1988.

- Martin Frank

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Super Bowl XLVII Quick Hits

The 49ers were playing in their sixth Super Bowl. Their quarterbacks had never thrown an interception in any of those games until Colin Kaepernick did it with 6:55 left in the first half. Ed Reed